We have all heard the expression “time waits for no man, or woman”. For me this has always been the case. For as long as I can remember there has never been enough time. Whether it was wishing for more daylight as a child or spending more time with distributors like you around the world. I can guarantee that you will always want more time. Unless of course you are 5 years old on Christmas Eve waiting for Santa to come!

Here in the USA and in many other countries, February is when we celebrate love. Here we call it Valentines Day. Typically we give flowers, cards, chocolate, etc. to the ones we love, thanking them for being such an integral part of our lives. Being grateful for what we have is a vital part of enjoying our lives. It’s also an absolute in finding success in FOREVER. You will never be happy or successful if you do not appreciate what you have now.

I have known unhappy billionaires. What could they possibly be unhappy about you might ask? Unfortunately they refuse to acknowledge and appreciate the victories they have won and the people that have helped them. They are so wrapped up in tomorrow that they forget to appreciate today. This same principle exists in your business. Take the time to develop personal relationships with your team that are built on trust and appreciation. Even the hardest business heart can be softened if you are willing to say thank you and spend time demonstrating empathy. This is especially important during the pitch phase.

Typically we come into contact with a person that has a need that the FOREVER business opportunity or product can address. We start a dialogue with them; many of us call it a 1-1. This may happen in a home or on a bus, the geography is not really important. What is important is that we make a conscious effort to align what we are saying with what they need to hear. This is not easy as it takes a significant amount of personal discipline to throw your ‘agenda’ out the window for a moment and subject yourself to another. Some of you are reading this and saying “no it‘s not hard. Listening is easy!” I challenge you to take a moment today to observe two people talking. See how neither is actually communicating but rather just waiting their turn to speak. Or, when you are talking with someone, practice asking only questions that relate to the other person. “How are you?’ “How is your family?” “How is work?” Don’t say anything about yourself for the entire conversation. It is not easy, I promise! But the best communicators have learned to do this. They have mastered the art of listening, asking follow up questions, and then acting on the answers. What they can achieve with this skill is simply incredible.

I love this short story and it is great reminder for getting off our own agenda!

A young, successful, “in the prime of their lives’, couple moves into an up and coming neighborhood. One morning while eating breakfast the young wife sees the elderly lady hanging her washed clothes out to dry in the sunshine.

"That laundry is not very clean", she said. "She doesn't even know how to wash her clothes; maybe she needs to spend some money on a decent detergent!”

Her husband looked on, but remained silent.

This same dialogue happened every time her neighbor would hang her wash to dry. The young woman would make a derogatory comment.

About one month later, the woman was surprised to see nice, clean clothes hanging on the line and said to her husband:

"Look, she has learned how to wash correctly; she must have finally learned how to wash them and spent some money on a decent detergent!”

The husband finally spoke and told his wife, “Actually, I woke up early this morning and washed our windows!”

And so it is with life. What we see when watching or listening to others depends on the purity of the window through which we look.

Good luck as you work on being a great listener and don’t forget to take the time to make that special someone know how much you love them!

Forever Yours